Hawaii lawmakers extend time for sex abuse cases

/in , /by

HONOLULU (AP) — The Hawaii Legislature has approved two bills that would give victims of child sex abuse more time to file complaints and prosecutors unlimited time to file criminal charges.

One of the proposals (HB 2034) would completely remove the statute of limitations for continuous sexual assault of a child or abuse in the first and second degrees.

The other (SB 2687) would extend the deadline for civil filings to 2016.

Victims had been given a two-year window to file lawsuits in cases that had passed the statute of limitations. But that window closed last week.

A flurry of lawsuits were filed before that, including one against “X-Men” director Bryan Singer. Singer has denied the allegations.